Grassley, Iowa Soybean Association press Trump to act as farmers lose Chinese market

Iowa farm leaders and Republican U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley are pressing President Donald Trump’s administration to take urgent action after China cut off purchases of American soybeans, threatening one of the state’s most important export markets.

China, once the top buyer of U.S. soybeans, has turned to Argentina and Brazil in response to Trump’s steep tariffs on Chinese imports and Beijing’s retaliatory duties on U.S. farm goods. Reuters reported China recently purchased about 1.3 million tons of Argentine soybeans, the same week the Trump administration announced a $20 billion bailout package for Argentina.

Grassley on Tuesday said he was frustrated with the timing of that aid and worried about the impact of lost sales for Iowa farmers.

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The veteran senator said he has spoken with U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins about relief options and that the administration is considering using tariff revenue to provide direct support to farmers.

“I’m hopeful the administration will come up with a plan to improve morale among farmers,” Grassley said, calling the situation “reminiscent” of the farm crisis of the 1980s. Though, he added that “nothing’s put together yet.”

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Trump said Wednesday he plans to direct money raised from tariffs on imports to help soybean growers.

“The Soybean Farmers of our Country are being hurt because China is, for ‘negotiating’ reasons only, not buying,” the president wrote on Truth Social. “We’ve made so much money on Tariffs, that we are going to take a small portion of that money, and help our Farmers.”

The president has not detailed how much money will be set aside or how it would be distributed. Administration officials have acknowledged farmers have been hit especially hard by the trade dispute, which includes a 55 percent tariff on most goods from China and retaliatory duties from Beijing on American goods.

Although many rural voters supported President Donald Trump in 2024 for his promises to cut red tape, reduce government waste and expand biofuels, his trade policies have dealt a heavy blow to agriculture. An Iowa State University study estimates retaliatory tariffs could cost Iowa’s soybean sector as much as $1.5 billion — nearly a quarter of its $5.8 billion value — while corn, pork and ethanol producers also face losses.

With harvest underway in Iowa, now is the time for making U.S. soybean sales, not empowering competitors, Iowa Soybean Association leaders warned.

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ISA President Tom Adam, in statement Thursday, warned that without immediate policy changes, the U.S. risks losing ground to South America in a global market painstakingly built over decades.

“The mood in rural Iowa — and across much of farm country — is one of anxiousness and frustration,” Adam wrote. “ … With strong yields and a nearly ideal harvest season underway across Iowa and large sections of rural America, grain bins will soon be filled with quality U.S. soy that needs to find a home.”

Adam said Trump’s current trade policies are a “bitter pill” for farmers, urging the administration to broker a trade agreement with China that “immediately expedites soybean purchases.”

Grant Kimberley, ISA’s senior director of market development, said during a panel discussion at The Gazette’s Iowa Ideas conference Thursday that soybean farmers face mounting pressure.

“There is no other market to replace China, so that's a challenge when you get locked out of that market,” Kimberley said. “And we've not sold a single bushel of soybeans — new crop soybeans — into China yet, which is highly unusual. And you know, we're looking at new crop sales for soybeans at 20-year lows. And so that's a challenge. That's a big problem.”

China buys about 60 percent of the world’s soybeans, making its absence impossible to fully offset, he said. Kimberley said markets in Europe, Egypt, Mexico and the Philippines remain strong, with buyers willing to pay a premium for U.S. soy’s quality and consistency. Long-standing partners like Japan and South Korea provide stability, he added, but are not growth markets.

State leaders are exploring new opportunities. Kimberley credited Gov. Kim Reynolds and Iowa Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig for efforts to expand trade, including with India. But he cautioned that India’s high tariffs, protectionist policies and limited demand for protein make it “a tough nut to crack” and not a replacement for China.

The financial strain is already taking a toll on farm families. Kimberley said the downturn, worsened by stalled trade, has echoes of the 1980s farm crisis. Unless a deal with China is reached soon, he warned, the narrow window for U.S. soybean exports this year could close.

The shift deepens concerns that American farmers will again bear the brunt of Trump’s hard-line trade stance. A previous trade war with China in 2018 cut deeply into U.S. soybean sales and forced the federal government to provide more than $23 billion in relief payments.

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Grassley said the long-term solution must be a trade agreement that restores access to the Chinese market.

“Farmers don't want to get money from the federal treasury. They want to get it from the market,” he told reporters Tuesday. “So farmers need markets and one of the best ways the president can help get markets is to get a settlement very quickly with China.”

Adam echoed that sentiment in his column urging swift action. He said U.S. soybean exports have historically accounted for half of production, including roughly 550 million bushels expected from Iowa’s 9.3 million acres this year.

The association outlined three immediate priorities: a trade agreement with China to reopen sales, short-term federal payments to bridge losses until markets stabilize, and regulatory moves to boost biofuel demand.

Despite the tension, Trump continues to enjoy support from many Iowa Republicans. Gov. Kim Reynolds praised him on social media, writing: “Iowans voted for President Donald Trump 3 times because we knew that he’d always fight for farmers. Thank you for your commitment to rural America and for putting agriculture top of mind in negotiations.”

For Grassley and farm groups, however, the urgency is clear. With bins filling up during a strong harvest season and foreign buyers looking elsewhere, Iowa farmers are warning that without immediate trade breakthroughs, the damage could linger.

“Agriculture thrives when America leads on trade,” Adam wrote. “We can’t afford to let uncertainty and political maneuvering erode the markets farmers have spent decades cultivating. The crop is here. The quality is proven. The demand exists. What’s missing is the resolve to reconnect America’s farmers with a world of buyers who want to purchase our soybeans.”

Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com